Begay: Tiger's repeated setbacks have been like "adding logs on the fire"

Dennis Nett / The Post-StandardTiger Woods chats with Notah Begay III (left) and Camillo Villegas before the start of the 2009 Notah Begay Foundation Challenge at Turning Stone Resort's Atunyote Golf Club in Vernon, N.Y. Begay hopes that his Woods, his close friend, can return for this year's event.

During a conference call Wednesday night, former PGA Tour player Notah Begay III offered some insight into the difficulties good friend Tiger Woods has faced in trying to recover from personal and physical problems the past 2½ years.

Begay said Tiger’s return to golf in time for the next major championship — the British Open — remains “up in the air” as he continues to recover from injuries to his left knee and Achilles’ tendon suffered in April during the final round of the Masters. Begay also said Woods is “not immune” to the stresses that come from repeated setbacks and that he believes the world’s former No. 1 golfer is frustrated by the personal drama in his life, his recurrent physical injuries and adjusting to a major swing change which has yet to win him a tournament.

“It’s just like you keep adding logs on the fire,” Begay said. “Instead of things cooling down and becoming more normalized, the fire just gets bigger.”

Begay helped arrange the conference call after announcing that his fourth annual charity golf event — the NB3 Foundation Challenge — at Turning Stone Resort in Verona was being postponed to give Woods a chance to recover fully from his injuries. Woods was scheduled to be the headliner in the July 5 pro-celebrity shootout, an exhibition that was to include Begay, PGA Tour upstart Rickie Fowler, NFL quarterbacks Tony Romo and Sam Bradford and three players still to be named.

Woods announced Wednesday he would be unable to play in his next scheduled event, the AT&T National, which ends July 3, and the NB3 Challenge because of lingering health issues.

Begay said he hopes to have a new date and list of participants announced in the next couple of weeks, but added there is a possibility that it won’t be played this year. Some of it may be contingent on whether Woods is healthy enough to return to Turning Stone, where he last played in 2009 in the second NB3 Challenge.

“I think once we’re able to get a general sense of a date from Tiger’s camp, then I think we’ll be able to lock down whether or not the chances of an event taking place this year, with or without him, whether or not it’s going to happen,” Begay said. “Everything right now is pushing for Tiger to be a part of this event. If an event doesn’t happen, we’re certainly going to take a rain check and do it in 2012.”

If the exhibition goes on without Woods this year, Begay said he will probably have to replace the football players, who would have to report to their respective NFL camps by the end of July if the labor dispute is settled in time. A possible lineup change, he said, could involve a reprise of last year’s 12-player, mixed-team tournament, which paired LPGA greats like Annika Sorenstam, Lorena Ochoa and Cristie Kerr with PGA Tour stars, including Vijay Singh, Fowler and Hunter Mahan.

“We’re sort of right now weighing the pros and cons of bringing the (LPGA) ladies back,” Begay said. “I think the golf fans in Central New York really appreciated what they did for the event. They were phenomenal, as far as being very easy to work with and accommodating, so that’s certainly an option. If that doesn’t take place, then we will most likely look to secure some other celebrities to have a similar-type format.”

The time slot also is likely to move to late August or early September, with Aug. 30 — the Tuesday before the PGA Tour’s second playoff event, the Deutsche Bank Championship in Boston — being a strong possibility.

“It could be a week before or a week later (than the Deutsche Bank),” Begay said. “We’re going to have to juggle a few things around as far as what the resort’s needs are and what their interests are, as well as everybody’s schedule. But that should be the appropriate time window that we’re shooting for.”

Begay, who was teammates with Woods when they were at Stanford, offered some insight into his close friend’s struggles since Woods’ world started unraveling in 2009 following revelations about his multiple sexual infidelities. What followed was a divorce, a split with his swing coach, adoption of a completely new swing style and a myriad of injuries. He has not won a major event since the 2008 U.S. Open or a PGA Tour event since September 2009, and he has not been able to play because of his leg injuries since the Masters.

“It’s been a series of setbacks,” Begay said. “First, it’s the personal drama and then you try to recover from that. And then there’s the technical issues with the golf swing and making a monumental, or fairly big swing change. Those are two big things. And then you throw tough (physical) issues on top of that. It’s just like you keep adding logs on the fire.

“Instead of things cooling down and becoming more normalized, the fire just gets bigger. It seems like now you’re dealing with sort of the hangover from the personal issues in his life, and still not knowing whether his swing — he still has not won with his new swing.

“So, there are a lot of questions in the air right now. I know that he’s not immune to what the rest of us aren’t immune to. When things get tough, we all get stressed out. I’m pretty sure that he’s pretty frustrated right now.”

Begay said he has been in recent contact with Woods and was surprised to learn that Woods was still wearing a protective boot on his left foot.

“We’ve visited back and forth over the last week or so,” Begay said. “So, I was a little concerned earlier, about a week ago, when he still had his boot on. I was hoping that as soon as that boot comes off, I know that he’s going to get back and start practicing. So that was a bit of a concern to me.

“But my biggest thing was to be supportive and encourage him to regain his health because it’s good for golf and he’s good for golf. I think that there are a lot of people out there now that want to see him bounce back. He’s got a little bit tougher road to climb now, but it’s tough playing hurt.”

As for Woods’ return to golf, Begay said making it in time for the British Open, July 14-17, may be too soon.

“I really think that’s up in the air, based on our discussions this morning,” Begay said. “The game of golf is very fickle. If you’re wearing a protective boot for a couple weeks, you know, it’s going to take nearly two weeks to get your touch back, your mobility back.

“The British Open is pretty close to being right around the corner. I think if things worked out perfectly for him, he would be able to play that event. But if there are any sort of shortcomings and he has to miss a day or two of practice, then I don’t know if he’ll take the trip over there.”

TICKET HOLDERS
For those who have already purchased tickets for the NB3 Foundation Challenge, Turning Stone said they will have the option to keep them or exchange them following the announcement of the new date. Ticketholders seeking a refund should contact the Turning Stone Box Office for further instructions and information at 361-7469.